12th Hole, The Wilderness at Fortune Bay, Tower, Minnesota

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Clubhouse, The Wilderness at Fortune Bay, Tower, Minnesota

January 5, 2012 on the 10th Tee: 41F, The Wilderness at Fortune Bay, Tower, Minnesota

http://www.golfthewilderness.com/layout9.asp?id=215&page=6712

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http://www.startribune.com/local/west/135554893.html

11th Hole, The Wilderness at Fortune Bay, Tower, Minnesota

Pretty good year for golf:

• 35 official rounds for handicap
• 18 rounds on The Wilderness at Fortune Bay
• GHIN index dropped from 15.1 to 11.6
• Low round of 81 (9/10/11 at Willingers)

Some Minnesota courses are still open, but I’m probably done until spring…

Third Hole, Ridges at Sand Creek, Jordan, Minnesota

Apparently I’m getting rusty when it comes to reporting Minnesota golf course news, as I completely missed the fact that my home course, The Wilderness at Fortune Bay, is doing a little construction in the off season. Good thing I actually read the course newsletter this month…

Our superintendent Vince Dodge writes:

A few of the projects that will be noticeable to the golfing public next season will be the addition of a new white tee on 3 as well as a white tee enlargement on 7. These two tees in particular have taken a beating from heavy wear in past years and the additional teeing area should help us to avoid this in the future. In addition, the new tee on 3 offers a different angle and overall feel of the hole that should be of interest in coming years.

Seven tee is expected to re-open in June, while the new white tee on three should open in August. It also looked like there was some drain work being done on eight fairway, near the 100 yard marker.

I took a rather melancholy walk around the course this afternoon with the camera. Today would have been a great day to play, with nice fall temps and still perfect tees and fairways. A few shots of the construction zones, along with a few other holes (all covered up and waiting for winter), after the jump.

16th Fairway, The Wilderness at Fortune Bay, Tower, Minnesota

Today might have been the last round of the year for me – cold weather golf is just not my thing any more. I thought it was going to be a perfect fall day with sunshine and temps in the mid-50s, but the wind in Cannon Falls was absolutely howling all afternoon. Good thing I had three layers of clothing to work with as the day went on…

Our group visited The Summit Golf Club in Cannon Falls, which had a great $24 walking special. I haven’t played there since July of last year and have generally held a high opinion of this course. I don’t know if my poor scoring colored my view today, but I’m starting to feel that there are too many tricked up holes to play here on a regular basis (particularly over courses like Willingers and Ridges at Sand Creek).

Aside from the wind, course conditions were good for late fall. Greens were smooth and fairways were dry, which provided a lot of roll. I was striking the ball OK, but just couldn’t deal with the wind. Limited landing areas on many holes plus 40+MPH winds made for way too many sevens on my scorecard.

Time for skis and snowshoes?

Got it down to 11.8 – lowest ever?

Fall Colors on the Ninth Green, The Wilderness at Fortune Bay, Tower, Minnesota

426-yard, par four thirteenth hole, Ridges at Sand Creek, Jordan, Minnesota

It seems like almost every golf course I play on a regular basis has at least one nemesis hole where I never score well. At this point, screw ups on these holes are almost all mental (although some holes are just plain hard). I imagine the pros have a similar feeling about the seventeenth at TPC Sawgrass – you know it’s coming, you know all the details of the hole, yet it still has the all-too-frequent ability to mushroom into a dreaded “other.”

Today’s lovely round at Willingers Golf Club in Northfield had two current nemesis holes for me: the par three seventh (which I don’t think I’ve hit in years) and the par four sixteenth (pictured above). I doubled both today in different fashions:

• Hit the left bank of the seventh green and ricocheted directly into the marsh. Dropped, chipped on and missed the putt.
• Pulled my drive on sixteen into the trees on the left off the tee, dropped and punched out to about 115 yards. Hit a perfect pitching wedge that landed just short of the hole, bounced up, hit the flag stick and rolled long. Missed the putt.

Golf for me really isn’t about scoring these days – I play primarily for the social interaction, being outside on a beautiful day and getting in a good walk. There is still the opportunity for a decent score each time I tee it up, though, so it would be nice if these nemesis holes would give up a par every once in a while…

Hillcrest Golf Club of St. Paul has new owners since the last time I played there – Steamfitters Pipefitters Local 455. I’m pretty sure this is the only union-owned private golf course in Minnesota (and it sounds like one of just a few in the whole country).

This was the third time I’ve played Hillcrest, the first two with former Eagle Eye Photography owner, Steve Smith. Aside from the ownership, nothing much had changed on the course from what I remember. I think some bunkers were removed from the hill fronting the 17th green, but that’s about it.

The greens were typical private course speedy and we couldn’t hold one all day – every approach shot would roll through to the back. With so many elevated greens, being at the back added an extra dimension of fear when putting back to pins located in the front. I also experienced several greens that I just couldn’t read – don’t know if they were optical illusions or what.

It will be interesting to see what happens with this course. It’s not exactly the greatest time to own a golf course, public or private. I know the union paid $4.3 million (in cash even), but I’d love to read the business plan behind that deal. Apparently the purchase agreement includes a commitment to stay private for a minimum of two years.

Hillcrest holds an interesting piece of St. Paul golf history, opening in 1921 as a municipal course and operated as a predominately Jewish private club from 1945 until the late 70s. The current clubhouse opened in 2000 and they’ve been offering numerous specials the past few years in a big marketing effort to stop declining membership. Time will time if the pipefitters have better luck with that goal.

Hillcrest trivia: the 14th tee is the highest point in Ramsey County.

The cold temps this week reminded me that our golf course will be closed for the 2011 season on October 10 (no matter what). Discounted fall rates are in effect and our tee sheet has been jammed all week.

If you’d like to get up here and join me for a round, there are only 25 days left after today…

As part of my effort to start writing more, today I go back to my roots of golf course reporting. Today’s afternoon round was at one of my favorites: Willingers Golf Club near Northfield. I was accompanied by three generations of Millers – Grandpa Al, his son Brad and grandson Sam. We took advantage of the aeration special ($30 walking or riding), which proved popular based on the nearly full parking lot at 1:30PM.

They seem to be using the newer aeration process with smaller holes that heal quickly. To be honest, it was hard to tell that they punched at all this week. The greens seemed to be rolling a little slower than normal, but overall were quite nice. The winter damage I experienced on the sixth fairway this spring was completely healed and most fairways were fine – just some spots here and there.

I wish they would find an extra 64 yards to get the white tees to 6000 yards, as people keep playing the wrong tees for their ability. The group in front of us was terrible, but they seemed to think the blue tees were the place to be. Unfortunately, they also couldn’t keep pace and were out of position most of the day, which led to a 4:40 round. Frustrating.

On the upside, I tied my best score ever, a nine-over 81. I started with five straights pars, followed by bogeys on holes six through ten. I had five more pars on the back nine, but took a double bogey on the difficult par four sixteenth. I pulled my tee shot into a trap on the par three seventeenth, which basically blew any chance of breaking 80 for the first time. Still, it was nice to play an entire round with the same ball for a change.

Last weekend I volunteered about 45 hours over three days at an annual event that is very special to me, the Tapemark Charity Pro-Am. This was the 40th anniversary of the tournament, which is held at Southview Country Club in West St. Paul. I’ve been there for the past ten years and have been responsible for the web site, online scoring, AV presentations and a big chunk of the photography. It’s always a very stressful weekend (especially Saturday night when we determine the cut), but it’s also very rewarding to know I’ve helped raise nearly $7 million for charities dedicated to serving people with developmental and learning disabilities.

I also love seeing this group of people – tournament officials and volunteers, great Minnesota (and regional) golf professionals, amateur players and the wonderful staff of Southview. The camaraderie and tradition in the scoring tent over the three days is unmatched – hot dog runs, White Castle (which I actually skipped this year), Cody vs. code, weather forecasts, live Twins scoring and lots of others make it a weekend like no other.

The pro golf this year on the final day was exciting – the Friday and Saturday leader, Tyler Obermueller, suffered from a bad hangover (premature celebration), Don Berry made his usual charge to the lead (but fell short after a rare bogey on six) and former Gopher Ben Meyers (pictured above) shot an incredible 64 (with an almost unfair bogey on his final hole, the par four ninth). But it was the golfer from Oxbow, Ben Freeman, who carded six birdies on his way to a 65 for the two-stroke win over Berry and Meyers. Not bad for your first pro tournament!

I usually don’t follow the team competition too closely, but team 14 had a career day on Friday, firing an amazing 30-under-par in the net best two ball format. The pro and the “A” am both shot 68s, while the “B” and “C” players both shot in the low 80s. They came back to Earth the second day, but still tied for the overall team championship on Sunday.

Mark your calendars now: the 41st Annual Tapemark will be held June 8-10, 2012.

After more than ten days away, I was very pleased to return today to a northern Minnesota with much less snow and ice. I grabbed the camera and took a stroll around The Wilderness at Fortune Bay and stopped in to chat with GM Tom Beaudry. Green covers are scheduled to start coming off on Wednesday, with a tentative course opening in 3-4 weeks.

Some sections of the course look incredible already, with several fairways still showing their mowing stripes from last season and many tee boxes looking pristine and ready for play. There is a lot of snow and water in spots, however, and I saw a fair amount of snow mold in the rough. Almost all water features are still frozen too.

The forecast this week calls for one more warm, sunny day tomorrow, then lows drop back into the mid-20s the rest of the week.

7MM Wilderness at Fortune Bay Photo Gallery

Last Sunday I had the opportunity to play in the Vice Chairman’s Golf Tournament during the National Indian Gaming Association convention in Phoenix, Arizona. The vice chairman of NIGA also happens to be the tribal chairman for Bois Forte, so it was really an honor to be a part of the Fortune Bay team.

The tournament was held at We-Ko-Pa Golf Club in Fort McDowell, Arizona. There are two 18-hole courses there – Saguaro and Cholla. We played the former, which has been rated the number one public course in Arizona the past four years by Golf Week. It also sits at number 85 on the top 100 modern courses list for 2011.

The weather and people were great, the scenery breathtaking and my golf game actually not that rusty.

Now to bring some of this warm weather back to Minnesota…

7MM NIGA 2011 Golf Tournament Photo Gallery

I haven’t had much desire to write lately, but lots of cool stuff happened last weekend that deserves at least a passing mention…

First off, we went to see the “naked Japanese dudes” at the Walker Art Center. Eiko and Koma’s Gallery 2 exhibit was truly unlike anything else I’ve ever seen. Eerie, reflective, damp and intimate, it really needs to be seen in person to fully appreciate it. Closes November 30, so move fast.

Second, I took a guided tour of the new clubhouse at Hazeltine National in Chaska last Saturday. I unfortunately didn’t take any photos and it appears that their website doesn’t have any yet either, so you’ll just have to take my word that the inside is just beautiful. I wasn’t wild about the exterior design during construction, but I think overall it turned out very nice (and it’s very unique – very Hazeltine). A few notes:

• The new building sits higher and closer to the ninth and eighteenth greens, so the views towards the course are spectacular.
• Wood beams from the old building were used throughout the new structure, giving it a nice historical (and green) storyline.
• The old putting green is gone, replaced by two new ones: a small one near the first tee and a much larger one located at the site of the old practice bunker.
• The driving range was rebuilt with a mock fairway that contains six target greens (three on each side).
• A new indoor practice area is being built in the basement that will include a 9,000-square-foot putting green, a Ping room with launch monitors and video analysis and a simulator bay that will allow play on a virtual Hazeltine.
• The locker rooms are beautiful – sloped roof with lots of windows opening towards the course, light wood lockers with vertical lines and understated handles with engraved member names, large shower heads and nice sitting areas. There is a row of lockers for past Hazeltine champions (Payne Stewart, Rich Beem, Y.E. Yang, etc.) and I felt the mens locker room had a very Zen rock garden feel to it (and a little Frank Lloyd Wright too).
• Like at Augusta, there is a mini “Crow’s Nest” at the top of the clubhouse accessed via a spiral staircase, but I didn’t get to see this.
• The new pro shop seemed smaller to me than the old one, but it reportedly has more display space.
• I loved all of the photos, paintings and historical items displayed throughout the facility, which included original drawings by Robert Trent Jones, Sr. and a lot of USGA and PGA memorabilia.

All of the on-course upgrades were completed before the snow hit, so the course is currently on schedule to re-open in June. The new grass took so well, in fact, that the grounds crew actually mowed on November 1 before placing the winter covers.

Finally, we took the kids to see the animated feature My Dog Tulip at the Edina Cinema. In hindsight, I’m not really sure that it’s an appropriate movie for younger children, but it was very cute. Based on the book by J.R. Ackerley, it starts with a great quote:

Unable to love each other, the English naturally turn to dogs

Lots of good English humour scattered throughout, it definitely merits a viewing when it hits Netflix – especially if you are a dog person.

OK, back to radio silence…

Last Saturday I had the opportunity to play a private course I’ve never visited before, Brackett’s Crossing Country Club in Lakeville. Mr. Miller hosted our foursome (thanks Brad!) and we had wonderful fall weather to play what was likely my last round of the year.

The 6,990-yard, par-71 course was designed by Don Herfort and opened in 1961. We felt the back nine was much stronger than the front nine, but overall the conditioning was great and I enjoyed the round. The greens were very quick, which created all sorts of fun putting situations.

My favorite hole was the 408-yard, par-four fifteenth, which involves a tee shot from an elevated tee across a pond to a dogleg landing area (pictured above).

The pro shop seemed very nice, but I didn’t really get to spend much time in the clubhouse. I think they were hosting a high school dance and the fried food being prepared made the walk up the 18th fairway feel like the state fair.

I’m not sure how many members BCCC has, but lots of them were out Saturday enjoying the rare treat that is mid-October golf in Minnesota.

7MM Brackett’s Crossing Photo Gallery

Two Tapemark Charity Pro-Am regulars battled it out today in a two hole sudden-death playoff on the 18th and 1st holes at the Wilderness at Fortune Bay in Tower. Columbia professional Jeff Sorenson beat Edinburgh USA professional Don Berry by knocking his approach shot on the 649 yard, par five first hole to a few inches.

Berry held a one shot lead heading into the last two holes, but Sorenson birdied the par three seventeenth hole after hitting his tee shot to about four feet. He almost won the tournament in regulation after hitting the flag on eighteen from a perfectly executed green-side bunker shot. Both players made par fours on the first playoff hole.

A pair of Troy Burne professionals (and Tapemark regulars), Dave Tentis and Brent Snyder, tied for third after shooting matching totals of 68-72-140 (-4). Here are the top 10 finishers (full leaderboard):

7 MInute Miles 2010 MN PGA Championship Photo Gallery

I saw lots of Tapemark friends today as the Minnesota Section of the PGA visited Fortune Bay today for the first day of their season-ending championship.

Dave Tentis, Brent Snyder and Jeff Sorenson are all tied for the lead at 68 (-4). Don Berry and Scott McDonald (Windsong Farm) are two back at 70 (-2). The full leaderboard can be found here.

The championship wraps up tomorrow. Spectators are welcome!

7 MInute Miles 2010 MN PGA Championship Photo Gallery

In honor of joining the home of the number one public golf course in Minnesota next week, I’ve started updating my old golf content from Golfing in Minnesota, Golden Links Golf and Minnesota Golden Links on a new 7 Minute Miles golf page.

The Wilderness at Fortune Bay is such a great course (par three third hole pictured above). If you’ve never played it, you need to come up and visit ASAP…

The 39th Annual Tapemark Charity Pro-Am golf tournament is coming up quickly. This year’s event runs June 11-13 at Southview Country Club in West St. Paul. Check out the great online course tour to see what’s in store for the field of amateurs and professionals.

The $750 entry fee includes two guaranteed rounds at Southview (plus a 3rd round if your team makes the Sunday cut), two tickets to the team drawing banquet on Wednesday, June 10, two tickets to the Saturday night dinner and a Pro-Am merchandise package.

The tournament makes charitable contributions in the form of general operating grants to five organizations: Arc Greater Twin Cities, Arc of Minnesota, Dakota Communities, ProAct, and the Learning Disabilities Program of Children’s Home Society and Family Services.

If you can, please support this event by playing, volunteering, buying a raffle ticket or making a donation.

Wednesday was the fourth annual media day for the Minnesota Section PGA at Town and Country Club in St. Paul. Special thanks to Ed Heil of StoryTeller Media for the invitation.

The weather this spring in Minnesota has been record-setting (no measurable snow in March or April) and Wednesday was perfect. The format for the day was two-person match play scramble and I was paired with the head pro from Victory Links, Scott Roth. We were up against Mr. Heil and Steve Whillock, Director of Golf at Oak Marsh Golf Course in Oakdale.

Steve is preparing for the U.S. Senior Open qualifier at Mendakota in June and his game was on. He has a unique setup routine, but it really works – he crushed the ball straight down the fairway every time. Despite a strong start, Ed and Steve closed us out by the 15th hole. We had a great foursome, though, and had a very enjoyable morning.

Town and Country was in wonderful condition. The greens were fast, everything was green, flowers were blooming and construction of a new tee box on the 15th hole was proceeding nicely. I played T&C for the first time last year and thought it was a bit quirky. This year I decided I really like the uniqueness of the layout and absolutely love the history. The seventh and eighth holes still aren’t my favorite due to the closeness of Cretin Avenue, but all of the others are full of character and fun to play.

I talked to many people about the general state of the game right now and the consensus was downbeat. Courses are being sold for cents on the dollar, private clubs are dropping fees to attract and retain members and everyone is trying to make due with less. It seems like there will be a shakeout in the industry in the short-term, which will likely see several courses close for good.

Here is the official media day report from the PGA:

The Minnesota Section PGA held its annual Media Day April 28th at Town and Country Club in Saint Paul, MN. Twenty-two members of the media teed it up with twenty-two PGA Professionals in the Scramble format. The team representing Television/MGA took home the trophy for the second time in the history of the event by an 8-3 margin over the Print/Media. In the individual team competition Scott Seroka from KARE-11 TV partnered with Tim Brovold of Bunker Hills GC to shoot an 8-under par 64 to claim the top spot. Finishing one shot back at 7-under par 65 were Dan (The Common Man) Cole from KFAN Radio and his partner Bill Israelson from the Vintage at Staples. Special thanks to Town and Country Club and PGA Professional Ryan Rindels for hosting.

Be sure and check out the section calendar if you’d like to attend any of the great events conducted in the Minnesota section this season. One other plug – if you want to get better this year, sign up for a lesson with your local pro. It’s good for the game – in more ways than one…

I noticed while driving through Chaska yesterday the new clubhouse at Hazeltine National Golf Club is progressing nicely:

You can also track daily progress on their live web cam.

My 2010 USGA member gifts arrived yesterday, just in time for our first big snow storm of the season. I love the cover shot of Chambers Bay – I really hope to play there someday. They will host the 2010 Amateur, then the 2015 U.S. Open. Looks like a beautiful setting…

The good weather streak in Minnesota continues, which allowed my friend Brad and I to get in one more round of golf for 2009. We had a 12:42 tee time at Valleywood in Apple Valley and barely finished 18 holes before the early sunset. I was a little rusty after not playing for a few weeks, but still shot an 88 from the MGA tees.

The weather this week still looks good (upper 50s and sunny), but I think I’m probably done for the year. Time to get the skis ready!

Thanks to a last minute call from my lawyer and friend KJ, I got in nine more holes for the 2009 golf season. We played the back nine at Parkview Golf Club in Eagan, which as you can see above, was absolutely covered in leaves. There actually is a ball in the picture, if you can believe that. Good thing scores don’t count after October 15 in Minnesota (although I did birdie the par five thirteenth hole).

Barring another warm-up, that’s probably it for me this season. Time to get the skis ready!

Yesterday might have been my last Minnesota round of the season, and what better place to play than the Meadows at Mystic Lake with my friend and neighbor Tim (center). We both had our doubts about the weather at the start, with clouds covering the sun and winds blowing 13-17 mph right in our faces on the longer holes on the course (including the way too long 442-yard, par four fifteenth hole). Tim’s brother-in-law Bob (right) and his friend Dave (left) also joined us.

Things turned out fine, though, and I shot my usual 93 from the 6,668-yard blue tees (72.3/142). The highlight of the round for me was a birdie on the 410-yard, par four fifth hole. My drive was in the fairway, but left me with about 190 yards to the green, which is fronted by water. I hit one of my best four-iron shots ever, landing in the front third of the green. The 15 foot birdie putt curved right into the middle of the hole.

I wish winter would hold off a little longer – all of the courses I’ve played lately have great conditions now that could last another few weeks. Hard to play in 40 degree temps and snow showers, though.

Tim and I stayed for lunch in the wonderful Meadows Grille and watched the last ten minutes of the Vikings game (which was another story in itself). Thanks again, Tim!

7MM Meadows at Mystic Lake Photo Gallery

Thanks to member Steve Morrison, the Miller boys and I played Bristol Ridge Golf Course in Somerset, Wisconsin, this weekend. I had never been to this course before and was happy to get out anywhere after a few weeks of cold and snow.

Located about 15 miles from Stillwater, Bristol Ridge was different from what I expected. Some holes reminded me of Hidden Greens (like the narrow, wooded, 354-yard second hole), while others had similarities to Braemar – long par fours with lots of elevation change. The fall colors really made the course pop, too.

The weather was perfect and the crowds definitely picked up behind us as the morning went on. I couldn’t hit a straight drive to save my life on the front nine, which contributed to a not-so-great 48. I had four pars on the back nine, but still only managed a 45, thanks to one blow-up hole. I really need to make driver improvement a priority next season.

After the round, we had a nice lunch that included cheese curds and grilled cheese sandwiches – when in Rome, right?

7MM Bristol Ridge Photo Gallery

With the marathon last week and the snow this week, I sort of forgot to post about golf round 28. On October 1, I played a free round with my neighbor at Crystal Lake Golf Club in Lakeville. We both had coupons for a free mid-week round that we had received at the Guide Dogs tournament this summer.

It was rainy, cold and windy, but a free round is a free round, right? We actually only got rained on for two holes and pretty much had the entire course to ourselves. I didn’t play that great, shooting 92 from the 5,827 yard white tees (68.7/127). I also had a $25 gift card from last year’s tournament that we used for lunch afterwards.

I’ve got one more planned tee time this year on Saturday – hopefully it will warm up enough to get that one in…

My last two rounds of golf have been all about the social aspect of the game. Last weekend I was invited to play Southview Country Club with Tapemark Charity Pro-Am president Phil Callen, while Monday was guest day at Mendakota Country Club, hosted by my friend and former Northwest Airlines colleague Phil Keeney.

Saturday afternoon at Southview was a perfect day for fall golf – sunny skies, cool temperatures and a very light breeze. I was surprised to find the course so empty – we played 18 holes in about 3 hours. I played the front nine well, shooting 43 with two doubles and four pars. I also hit the purest five-iron I’ve ever hit on the ninth hole. Too bad it flew the green, bounced across the putting green and almost hit the parking lot fence…

The back nine was much tougher for me, but also included a few bad breaks. Phil played well, especially considering he just opened a new play the night before (Bill W. & Dr. Bob at the Illusion Theater in Minneapolis). I ended up with a 92 from the whites (6,121 yards, 71.0/136), while Phil had a 97.

The weather Monday at Mendakota was straight out of the British Isles – winds gusting to 45mph, temps in the low 50s and a spot of rain here and there. There were a lot of cancellations, but I was ready to play in multiple layers of clothing. We were joined by two other former Northwest revenue people – Gary Zehnder (refunds) and Mark Bodurtha (agency sales).

This was the first time I’ve played Mendakota since the changes on the back nine. The par five thirteenth hole had major changes that I really liked (removed trees, new target fairway bunker, green-side updates), as did the par four sixteenth hole (lengthened, green pushed back towards pond). Changes were also made to the par three fourteenth (new back tee) and the par four eighteenth (tees moved). I didn’t take my camera with due to the weather, but I’ll get shots of these changes soon.

My former pro-am partner (and Mendakota head professional) Dale Jones wasn’t in the shop Monday, but the rest of the Mendakota staff was very friendly and the food service before and after our round was superb. Despite the weather (and getting my butt kicked in the two-man scramble), it was really fun visiting and recollecting old NWA days in building B.

Thanks again to Phil and Phil for the invitations.

7MM Southview Photo Gallery | 7MM Mendakota Photo Gallery

Yesterday I played in the Spare Key Golf Benefit at Willingers Golf Club in Northfield. Spare Key is a Bloomington-based non-profit organization that “provides assistance to Minnesota homeowners with critically ill or seriously injured children by making a mortgage payment on the family’s behalf, allowing them to spend time with their child.”

The driving range and silent auction for the event opened at 10:30AM, with a shotgun start at 1PM. The club was selling food for lunch before and a buffet dinner was included afterwards (that I had to skip out on). The silent auction has some nice items, including rounds at Hazeltine and Legends Club, a signed Y.E. Yang flag from the PGA and a diamond pendant from Tiffany & Co.

After nine years of working with the Tapemark Charity Pro-Am, I always find it interesting to see how other charity golf events are run. This event was a more traditional, one-day golf scramble with a shotgun start, so it’s not really an apples-to-apples comparison.

I’m not a big fan of scrambles for several reasons: 1) I like to play my own ball, 2) play is always so slow and 3) we never score well when handicaps aren’t used. Our round took a little more than five hours and we played terrible, finishing with a tournament-worst 73 (+1). That included bogeys on six, eight and sixteen and birdies on nine and thirteen. Not all the scores were in when I left, but 58 was leading (-14).

The volunteers were all very nice and the organizers did a great job with the sold out event. I took a peek at the silent auction table before I left and it appeared Spare Key raised a lot amount of money for the cause.

Special thanks to Jeff Miller and his wife Deb for the invitation.

Today was the women’s edition of the Tapemark Charity Pro-Am at Southview Country Club in West St. Paul. The weather forecast didn’t look great, but the rain broke up before it got to the metro area and the sun peeked out for most of the afternoon.

A record 142 golfers teed off for the 1PM shotgun start, which was proceeded by a nice buffet lunch prepared by the excellent Southview staff. Following the round, golfers gathered in the St. Andrews room for dinner and the awards ceremony. Here are the winners of the various flights:

• Championship: White-Beutel, 73
• First: Bixby-Shivers, 80
• Second: Hynan-Jeannette, 86 (tie breaker)
• Third: Begich-Swenson, 86
• Fourth: Hauff-Scheffler, 91
• Fun: Britton-Megan, 83

7MM 2009 Women’s Tapemark Photo Gallery

Golf is such a fickle game – after struggling to break 100 a few weeks ago, I visit Highland National in St. Paul last week and shoot a lifetime best score for 18 holes.

Granted, the 6,204-yard white tees, with their 70.3 rating and 128 slope, isn’t quite the same as playing from the tips at Hazeltine. The new design does have a fair amount of water, though, and you still need to hit the shots.

My favorite hole this time was the 405 yard, par four seventh hole. I pushed a drive to the left, with a large tree blocking my approach shot to the green. I hit a nice iron shot, but it clipped the top of the tree and dropped straight down. Still about 100 yards out with some branches in the way, I hit a low 7-iron shot that landed short of the green, then rolled up and in the cup for a birdie three.

Even with a three-putt on the par three fourth hole and a double on the par five twelfth, I shot a 40-41-81 (+9) to beat my previous best by one stroke (82s at Crystal Lake in 2000 and Hidden Greens in 2008).

The weather was perfect, with fog rising from the ponds during our early morning start. It looked like the greens had a deep tine process done recently, which didn’t effect putting nearly as much as normal aeration with top-dressing. The grounds crew was applying a lot of chemicals on each green in front us all morning, though.

The clubhouse had a power outage the previous night, so we weren’t able to pay until after the round. The weekday walking rate is $30 now, which we decided is just about right.

7MM Highland National Photo Gallery

Last week I decided to take my wonderful friend and lawyer Kevin Johnson out for a round of golf. When he said he had never played the Meadows at Mystic Lake, I called them up and booked a tee time right away. Wednesday also happened to be the first day of their fall “spin the wheel” promotion, so our rounds were a great deal too (although they replaced the old wooden wheel with a computerized version that just isn’t the same).

I’ve already written about the Meadows course this year, so I’ll just add that the new waterfall behind the seventh green is fully functional (see above) and they just aerated and top-dressed all of the greens. The wild flowers around the course were beautiful and we practically had the course to ourselves. We both played OK and had a wonderful lunch at the Meadows Grille after the round. I think the Grille is one of the best kept secrets in the whole complex – great food and great service.

7MM Meadows at Mystic Lake Photo Gallery

Last weekend, the Miller family and I were able to visit another Minnesota private course thanks to the Minnesota Golf Course Superintendents’ Association and their annual turf grass research fundraiser. I actually purchased the tee time for Stillwater Country Club during last year’s event, but was unable to make our scheduled day and time. Stillwater professional Mike Tracy was kind enough to let me re-schedule this year.

I had never been to this course before (even to take photos) and wasn’t sure what to expect. Charley Walters recently wrote that “A Stillwater family that applied for membership at Stillwater Country Club 13 years ago now is No. 30 on the waiting list.” Was this another ultra-exculsive country club or something else?

Turns out that the waiting list is long because it’s such a good value. I wouldn’t call anything in Stillwater “blue collar,” but SCC is very down-to-earth, with friendly members, low prices on food and drink and a relaxed, no tee times policy.

The golf course had many holes with unique character, particularly the par three thirteenth hole with a dramatic downhill approach over a mini-forest and the par four ninth hole with multiple tee boxes located at various points around a pond.

Course conditions were very nice, with beautiful flowers and landscaping all over. We played the 6,451-yard white tees (71.5/124), which included four par fours over 400 yards. The front side was also unique in that there is only one par three and one par five among those nine holes.

Despite a minor meltdown towards the end of the round, I shot a decent 46-47-93. There are a number of holes I’d like to play a second time now that I’ve seen them once, but overall we had a very enjoyable time.

7MM Stillwater Country Club Photo Gallery

On Labor Day, my friend Brad and I travelled to Northfield to play one of our favorites, Willingers Golf Club. Unfortunately, it wasn’t one of our better visits.

It started out on the wrong foot in the pro shop. We were informed upon checking in that tee times were running behind because of course maintenance (not sure exactly what that meant). Then they told us the full walking rate was $51 – I guess I haven’t played there at regular rates in a long time. I love the course, but $51 to walk is getting to be a bit much.

There was no starter on the first tee to keep the already delayed start in order, so that took longer than it should have. We were paired up with a friendly father-daughter twosome that were a little overmatched by the difficult Gill Miller design and ended up dropping out at the turn. This course can be hard for me, too, as I struggled to break 100. I did par one of my nemesis holes, though, the par three third hole.

The economy continues to delay the addition of houses to Willingers, but the shooters at the gun club next door were out in full force.

Despite all these issues, Willingers remains one of my favorites and I’m sure we’ll be back again soon.

7MM Willingers Photo Gallery

I remember when I first heard about Spring Hill Golf Club in Wayzata, three things jumped out: 1) Tom Fazio’s first (and still only) Minnesota design, 2) Michael Jordan buying a membership and 3) the reported $150,000 initiation fee. The plain and somewhat hidden entrance added to the mystique.

This week’s Gopher Invitational was the second time I have visited the course. I believe the first time was for an MGA Players’ Championship a few years back, but I only followed groups that day through part of the course. A caddie I met on Monday said if I hadn’t walked holes 14-17, I was missing the best part. I thought the first 13 were pretty spectacular, so I made sure to walk the entire course this time.

The championship tees measure 7,042 yards, with a rating of 74.7 and a slope of 147. Holes 1-6 and 14-18 are on the south side of highway 6, while the other seven holes are on the north side, connected via a tunnel. The first tee, practice area and eighteenth green are all located near the clubhouse, which sits on a bluff overlooking Long Lake. Google Maps has a decent satellite view of the layout.

As reported by many of the collegiate players, the course conditioning was perfect. I was impressed by the variety and character of all the holes, particularly the ones with major elevation changes. Many of the greens are elevated and several holes have tee shots that fall majestically to valley fairways. I was told the fall colors are breathtaking and should arrive in a few weeks (witness Peter Wong’s excellent Spring Hill photography here).

Spring Hill is a playground most people will never experience, which is a shame. Even at the Invitational, there were signs on the clubhouse and pro shop announcing only members, players and coaches were welcome inside. The members I met were all very nice, however, as were the staff (caddies, a food server and head professional Jeff Kringen).

I visited with several Minnesota golf friends during the Invitational: U of M golf director Brad James, head mens coach Andrew Tank, instructors Dee Forsberg-Voss and Gerald McCullagh, past MGA president Cal Simmons and MGA tournament director Doug Hoffman. The people are really what makes golfing in Minnesota so special.

7MM Spring Hill Photo Gallery

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to cross another private Minnesota golf course off of my life “to-play” list: Bearpath Golf and Country Club in Eden Prairie.

A very generous Bearpath member donated a round of golf to a charity auction, which was purchased by my friend Bob Klas, Jr. Bob was kind enough to ask Tapemark Pro-Am president Phil Callen and I to join him and the race for the course record was on…

This 7,030-yard, Jack Nicklaus design is located in a gated community that is rumored to be the home of a certain new Viking. The housing was impressive, but got a little too close to the course for my game. A lucky Boxer on the second hole now owns at least two of my golf balls.

We played the member tees, which measured 6,274 yards (71.1 rating, 137 slope). The course record was safe after the front nine, but I did manage to play the last five holes at +3.

The only other time I had visited Bearpath was to cover the 2008 Minnesota Golf Champions tournament, which moved from Minneapolis Golf Club for one year while that course was being renovated. I followed the lead groups on the front nine that day, so it was nice to see the whole course.

The clubhouse area is amazingly nice, with beautiful views of the ninth and eighteenth greens and a wonderful practice area. The pool and tennis courts looked great and the landscaping was lush throughout.

Course conditions were perfect and I enjoyed many of the holes (even if I had trouble scoring that day). I don’t recall which ones they were now, but a few holes on the back nine didn’t have as much character to me as the others (15?). I really liked the closing holes on each nine, however.

Thanks again to Bob, Phil and Bill for the great afternoon.

7MM Bearpath Photo Gallery

Kelly Kraft of Southern Methodist University set a new course record at Spring Hill Golf Club Monday, as he lead the Mustangs to a dominating team victory in the 2009 Gopher Invitational.

Kraft opened his round with a tap-in birdie on the first hole, followed by two pars, then a disastrous double bogey on the 192-yard, par three fourth hole. His tee shot found the left bunker and he bladed the sand shot over the green and down the hill into thick rough near a tree. The chip back towards the flag hit the surface of the green and rolled back into the original bunker. He was able to get up and down for a double bogey, but proceeded to go eagle-eagle-birdie on the next three holes.

The first eagle was on the 570-yard, par five fifth hole, where Kraft hit a blind pitch shot from the fairway that landed on the elevated green, hit the stick and dropped in the hole. The tees on the par four sixth hole were moved up to 288 yards and Kraft’s tee shot landed on the hill beyond the green and rolled back to the middle of the green. He sank the long, twisting putt for an eagle two.

After the eagles, Kraft birdied 7, 9, 10, 12, 14, 16 and missed a three-foot birdie putt on 17. The only other blemishes were a bogey on fifteen and a missed green on eighteen, where he was able to chip up for a tap-in par.

So to summarize, one double bogey, one bogey, seven birdies and two eagles gives you a course record 64. This broke the previous course record of 65, set a day earlier by Gopher Ben Pisani. Crazy good golf.

Scoreboards: Individuals | Teams

7MM 2009 Gophers Invitational Photo Gallery

After a three-week break from golf, my friend Brad and I drove down to Jordan to play the Ridges at Sand Creek. We were paired up with another twosome and had a nice day on the course (although our scores weren’t anything to write home about). I must have been too tired that day as well, since my back nine score was about nine strokes higher than the front.

I don’t recall what the green fees have been the past few years, but this time it cost $43 to walk 18 holes on the weekend. That’s still a decent value, but it’s starting to get close to being on the high side for south metro courses. Then again, it seems like a great deal compared to courses like Legends Club ($79) and The Wilds ($80).

The course allowed a charity to set up a contest fundraiser on the the par three fifth hole. There were flags all over and you could make a donation where you could win prizes for hitting the green or making a hole-in-one. I normally encourage support of charity golf, but these unannounced weekend promotions sort of rub me the wrong way.

We had a little excitement at the end of our round, too – a wedding party was having a reception in the clubhouse and the entire group was out taking pictures on the deck (and being a little rowdy). I think a lot of them were wishing they were out on the course playing instead.

That reminds me – the only service issue we’ve had with this course lately was in the clubhouse. Brad and I stopped in at the turn and the person working the bar basically ignored us. If you don’t want to serve us, at least have some vending machines available.

On the flip side, the friendly rangers on the course have been wonderful, keeping the pace of play moving and offering rides to walkers from the valley holes back up to the prairie holes. We also haven’t seen any fivesomes on weekends lately (one of our previous pet peeves at this course).

Ridges at Sand Creek – Joel Goldstrand’s finest?

7MM Ridges at Sand Creek Photo Gallery

Early last month, I played one of my favorite south metro courses, The Summit Golf Club in Cannon Falls. My round of 86 (five pars and one birdie) from the 6,471-yard white tees was one of the best of the year, so my thoughts on the course are understandably skewed. I even parred one of my nemesis holes – the 393 yard par four seventeenth hole (pictured above).

Head Golf Pro and General Manager Jack Baker said the year has been pretty decent, all things considered. The weather has been better this season and people seem to be staying close to home during the economic downturn (and still playing golf).

The weekend walking rate for 18 holes on the Championship course is $38 and the nine hole par 3 course is still a great deal if you have kids ($10 per adult and kids 16 and under play free).

7MM Summit Photo Gallery

I’ve known the new general manager of White Eagle Golf Club, Matt Vandelac, as a longtime Tapemark Charity Pro-Am participant and jumped at the chance to play a round with him and course co-architect Garrett Gill a few weeks ago (even though it technically is Golfing in Wisconsin).

White Eagle opened in 2000 just north of Hudson, and I recall playing with owner Bill Block a few years after the opening. The original plan was to sell real estate around the course, and a number of lots were sold before the sector hit turbulence.

We ran into Bill again this time and he remains committed to the development. The hope is that a new river bridge will revitalize the economy in that area and the course will be maintained and upgraded until that happens. For example, their last newsletter touts that the waterfall behind the 18th green has now been completed.

Bringing in an experienced leader like Mr. Vandelac is also a sign they are committed to service. Matt was most recently at Big Fish Golf Club in Hayward, Wisconsin, and also helped open StoneRidge in Stillwater. Sign up for their eClub newsletter and you will get a sense of all the programs and specials Matt and his staff have implemented.

Even though I played poorly that day, White Eagle is a beautiful course. There are many holes that will remind you of the Brainerd Lakes region, with dense trees and vistas reminiscent of the north woods. It was fascinating listening to the pro and the architect discuss ideas for future updates as we played, but any changes will depend on funding.

2009 rates are $59 weekdays and $69 on weekends and holidays (plus tax). These prices include carts with GPS, which really are needed on the sprawling, hilly layout. Many specials and discounts are also available – give Matt a call at 888-465-3004 or email him at matt@whiteeaglegolf.com for more information.

7MM White Eagle Photo Gallery